Seth Godin is a constant inspiration. I’m a marketing geek and his blog post today started my brain. This is all his blog post says…
| When we say, “here, I made this,” we’re not seeking credit, we’re taking responsibility. To be seen, to learn, to own it, to do it better next time. Hiding is too easy. And hiding is a trap. |
This helps sum up a couple things I’ve seen.
There are irresponsible entertainers who don’t last long. They jump in, try to get attention, maybe do something loud and controversial, then don’t want to deal with the fallout. They don’t want to take responsibility for the attention granted to them. They are given the collective trust of an audience and they don’t have a safe place to harbor it.
On the other end, there are badass entertainers who understand that any time they do something in public, it’s going to be hard.
When we buy a car
The price tag on the car is not the only thing. We also have to pay for…
- Fees
- Taxes
- Insurance
- Gas
- Car washes
- Repairs
- Mods
- Dash bobble heads
- Parking
When we create some entertainment bit, we gotta follow thru. We also have to pay for…
- audience experience
- legacy
- social message
- overall concept
- connection to our brand
- the way we treat collaborators
- morality
I was a class clown
I would be told over and over by teachers in school that I just wanted attention. It always perplexed and bothered me a little.
I thought learning was really fun. I thought being around other people could be really fun. But school sucked. I wanted to bring everyone up and engage them in the moment. That was bliss for me. I couldn’t articulate it, but I was doing the job that I thought my boring teachers were failing at.
When I made jokes about the lesson or the situation, it brought the attention of the class into the moment. That was so sweet for me. I loved sparking laughter and interest and learning. I took on a responsibility.
Now, I feel tremendous responsibility.
I have all this experience, skill, and a network. I’m putting myself out there more than ever. When a new project idea comes in, I write it down, but I’m not excited by it. I’m in love with the work I’m doing right now. I want to do it well and deliver on my responsibility.
It’s incredibly fulfilling, and I’m at an age where people aren’t accusing me so much of being an attention whore.